


Out of Time

by banneroflupinsbones



Series: Out of Time [1]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Self-Insert, Some violence?, death but idk yet
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-09
Updated: 2017-08-09
Packaged: 2018-12-13 09:18:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11756760
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/banneroflupinsbones/pseuds/banneroflupinsbones
Summary: A series of flashbacks and memories after the Reader is hurt.





	1. Out of Time

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was transferred over from my deviantart account!

“Spence, he’s here. He’s in my house,” you whispered into the phone, panic lacing your words.

You were hiding in your dark closet, your knees brought tightly against your chest. Your heartbeat was deafening in your ears, so much so that you could barely hear the man calling and looking for you downstairs. You clenched the phone tighter in your hand, listening to Reid’s voice on the other end of the line.

“(Y/N), it’ll be okay. I’m coming with the rest of the team and we’re going to save you, alright?” Spencer said, his voice reassuring and urgent.

“Stay on the phone with me, please, Spence. I’m so scared.”

“It’s alright, (Y/N). It’s alright. We’ll be there in less than fifteen minutes, and I’ll come get you, okay? It’s going to be okay,” Reid paused for a moment. “We’re getting in the car now and we’ll be there soon.”

Tears were streaming down your face and you were having trouble keeping your sobs from becoming audible to the man a floor below. You were silent for a few moments, straining to hear the intruder.

“(Y/N)? (Y/N)? Are you still there?” Spencer asked, somewhat frantic.

“I’m here,” you sobbed quietly.

“Okay. We’re about ten minutes away. You can hang on that much longer, right? I know you can. You’re doing great.”

“Spence, what do I do if he finds me?”

“You get the hell out of there. You run. You do whatever it takes to get out of that house and get somewhere safe, alright?”

You began to breathe quickly and you felt the fear rising in your chest—you were having a panic attack. Spencer could hear your erratic breathing and knew what was happening.

“It’s okay, (Y/N), it’s okay. Take a deep breath with me. In…” you heard him inhale deeply. “And out…”

You heard footsteps on the stairs and a voice calling your name. You gasped and froze, covering your mouth with your free hand to mask the sound of your breathing.

“(Y/N)?” you heard Spencer say your name, but you stayed silent. “(Y/N), if he’s found you, you get out as quickly as you can. You scream, you fight, you do what you need to do in order to make it out of there alive. We’ll be there soon and I’ll come get you, okay? I love you, (Y/N).”

You lowered the phone from your ear and quietly placed it on the floor beside you. You heard the man enter the room and take slow steps toward the closet. You carefully got up, trying not to rustle the clothes that surrounded you. You took a deep breath and clenched your fists even though they were shaking uncontrollably.

The door opened and the intruder stood there, a malicious smile on his face. Before he could do anything, you lashed out at him, aiming for his face. You scratched and clawed at him, and he raised his arms in defense. You took this opportunity to knee him in the groin and you quickly ran past him as he doubled over in pain. You ran through the room and down the stairs, going for the front door. You jiggled the knob and found that it wouldn’t turn. You tried unlocking the door, but something was blocking it and preventing it from opening. You gave up and turned around, sprinting down the hallway and towards the kitchen where there was a backdoor.

You turned the handle, but this door wouldn’t open either. Suddenly, you felt something pressed into your back and felt a hand on your shoulder. You froze, the hair on your neck rising. He had caught you.

“You’re spry, aren’t you?” he jerked you backwards and you went sprawling onto the floor, your head hitting the linoleum.

You sat up quickly and turned towards him, your head reeling from the impact. He held a knife towards you, and you could see the butt of a gun sticking out of his jacket pocket.

“Get up,” he commanded, gesturing with the knife. “Slowly, with your hands above your head.”

You did as he said, tears forming in your eyes. Was this it? Were you going to die?

“Please, what do you want? I’ll do anything you want, please just let me go,” you begged.

He looked at you and gestured for you to walk ahead of him into the other room. He roughly pushed you when you didn’t go as fast as he would have liked, like he knew you were stalling for time. He threw you onto the ground again and you stayed there, sobs racking your body. 

In the distance, you heard sirens. The man yelled at you to shut up as he listened, and he ran to the window to see what was going on. You heard the screeching stop of vehicles and car doors slamming.

“Did you call them?!” the intruder grabbed you by the shirt collar and pulled you up. “You little bitch!”

He pulled his gun out and held it, wrapping the arm with the knife around your front. He held the blade to your chest and raised the gun in front of him.

“You move, and I kill you. Do you understand?” he muttered into your ear.

“Yes, yes, I understand,” your voice shook.

You heard yelling. The next few moments became a blur as your anxiety and fear worsened. People in bulletproof vests and SWAT gear entered the room, their guns trained on you and the intruder. The man fixed his gun on the newcomers. You took a deep breath and scanned their faces. There stood Reid, his gun aimed at the man holding you. He was staring intently at the intruder, his hands steady on his gun. He glanced at you and gave you a slight nod.

“Let her go,” Hotchner stated.

“Why should I? I don’t care if you kill me, but I’m going to kill her first.”

The man unexpectedly plunged his knife into your chest and you gasped, pain the only thing that you knew in that moment. You heard shots ring out and felt the intruder stagger and fall behind you.

Time seemed to freeze for the next few seconds. You looked down at your wound, blood trickling from it and down your shirtfront. You placed a hand over the wound and looked up at the people surrounding you, your eyes coming to focus on Spencer last. He holstered his gun and ran to you, catching you in his arms and carefully lowering you to the ground. All of a sudden, time seemed to take on its normal pace and you were overcome with excruciating pain. Breathing became difficult, and you could taste blood in your mouth as it dribbled onto your chin.

“(Y/N), (Y/N), look at me!” Spencer said as you met his eyes. “Good, that’s good. I’m here; I told you I’d come get you. You’re safe now.”

More and more blood was coming from your wound, and your fingers were soon sticky with it. You coughed as crimson fluid came up your throat, dripping from your mouth.

“Spence…” you whispered.

“Hang in there, okay, (Y/N)? Just hang in there and you’ll be just fine. You’re going to be just fine. When we get out of here I’m going to take you out for a picnic and we’ll read to each other in the park. Does that sound good?”

You nodded, your eyes struggling to stay open. It hurt to breathe and with every breath you took, you felt your pain worsen. You heart was no longer beating furiously as it had been before, but was slowing. You felt dizzy and disassociated, what was before your eyes swimming in different patterns and shapes.

“(Y/N)! Can you hear me? Someone get a medic!” Reid yelled frantically.

Your breathing became shallow, your chest rising and falling at an alarmingly slow rate. Reid moved some of the hair from your face, looking deeply into your eyes—searching. He pressed his hand onto your wound, your blood quickly staining his clean hands.

“Breathe for me, (Y/N). Okay?”

You exhaled and stared lifelessly at Spencer. A single teardrop dripped off of his face onto yours.

"I love you."


	2. First Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader and Spencer meet for the first time.

You stood near the shelves, reading the spines of all of the history books before you. There were a few other people in the aisle and you ignored them, soon finding yourself alone as people slowly trickled away. You knew the title and the first letter of the author’s last name of the book you wanted, but that had given you no luck in finding it. You sighed and looked around, wondering if you were even in the right section. You saw the American history area, the Asian history section, and before you, the European history shelves.

You furrowed your brow, noticing a man come into the aisle and move near you. You glanced at him quickly, noting that he was looking at the same section of shelves you were. You turned your attention back to the books, this time starting at the beginning of the top shelf again and moving your way down. A green spine caught your eye and you became excited: this was the book you had been searching for for months. You reached out to grab it and so did the man beside you, your hands touching.

“Sorry!” he said, drawing his hand away quickly.

“No, I’m sorry!” you took a step back from the shelf.

“It looks like we’re after the same book, huh?”

“Yeah, it looks that way, doesn’t it?”

You smiled at the man, and he offered a lopsided grin in return. His book bag was secured across his chest, and he held onto the strap with both hands. You fidgeted with the strap of your purse, unsure of what to do. You didn’t want to surrender the book that you had wanted for so long to someone else.

“I’ve been looking for that book for months,” you started carefully, not wanting to sound confrontational.

“Me too. Who knew that people were so interested in cults in Ancient Rome?” the man offered a slight chuckle.

“I know!” you barriers broken, realizing that he knew what the book was about. “It’s crazy! I’m honestly shocked that no other bookstores have it. But it is kind of an obscure topic, so I mean I guess I understand?”

“What do you need it for?”

“I’m writing a paper for an academic journal. Sexual rites and sacrifices in the ancient world, that sort of thing.”

“Wow. That’s pretty…” he trailed off and looked away.

“Weird?” you offered.

“No, I was going to say interesting,” he met your eyes and gave you a gentle smile.

You grinned, gaining some sort of appreciation for the stranger. You tucked some of your hair behind your ear.

“Here,” the man took the book from the shelf and handed it to you. “You take it. You need it more than I do.”

“Really?”

He nodded. “The only thing is that you have to let me read it when you’re done.”

“It’s a deal,” you took the book from his hands, hugging it close to your chest.

The man dug in his bag for a pen and some paper, which he found. He scribbled a few letters and digits on the paper before handing it to you. You took it and looked at it.

“Thanks, Spencer,” you met his eyes. “I’ll be sure to give you a call when I’m done.”

“I look forward to it.”

Spencer smiled and gave you a slight wave, then turned and left you in the aisle alone.


	3. First Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader and Spencer share their first kiss.

“I’ve got this,” Spencer swiped the bill from under your hand.

“Can I at least give you a little bit of money?” you asked, opening your purse and pulling your wallet out.

“No, I wouldn’t allow it,” he smiled at you, putting the bill and cash on the table.

“Well, thank you very much, Spencer.”

You put your wallet back in your purse and shrugged your sweater on. Reid asked if you were ready to go and you nodded, not knowing what his plans for the date were. All you knew was that you were going to take a walk around town, but you didn’t know where. He opened the restaurant door for you and you slipped out, he fell into step besides you.

It was dark out, and the stars were already high in the sky. Spencer led the way and you followed, curious as to where he was going. Soon, you found yourselves near the Washington Monument. The structure was impressive, even at night—its height had you craning your neck to look at the top. Reid slowed his walk to a leisurely stroll and you matched his pace.

“Did you know that Dolley Madison and Elizabeth Hamilton raised the money for this?” he gestured to the monument.

“They were very impressive women,” you smiled. “I’m happy they were able to get the funds for this, and I’m happy that it’s still standing.”

“Speaking of the monuments, the Lincoln memorial across the mall is huge. And I’m not talking about what we can see! About forty percent of the monument is underground.”

“Wow, that’s a lot. It’s marble, right?”

“Yep,” he nodded.

It grew quiet between the two of you, and you looked down. You didn’t mind the silence that had overtaken you, but you weren’t sure how to break it. Spencer had his hands in his pockets and looked contemplative, which you thought was a good look for him. You liked how his brows furrowed together and his mouth turned downwards in concentration.

“Do you—Do you want to sit down for a bit?” he asked sheepishly, looking at you.

“Sure,” you nodded, tucking hair behind your ears.

Spencer led you to a nearby bench on the side of the path and waited for you to sit down before he took a seat beside you. You shifted uncomfortably, full of anxiety. You were nervous—was Reid going to try to kiss you? Did you want him to? You looked at him out of the corner of your eye and saw that he was looking straight up. You glanced upwards as well, and seeing nothing, returned your gaze to him.

“Are you okay?” you asked and pulled tissues out of your purse, thinking that he was holding a nosebleed at bay. 

“What?” he met your eyes, puzzled.

“Are you alright? Is your nose bleeding?” you held the tissues out to him.

“No, no! I’m fine! I was just looking at the stars,” he let out a nervous laugh.

“Oh good. I was worried.”

You returned the tissues to you purse and looked up. The sky was clear enough that you could see a myriad of stars. You felt lost in the universe for a few moments as you let the night sky take a hold of you, your anxieties melting away. You felt safe with Spencer, you realized, and just being in his company was making you happy. You were drawn away from the stars and your thoughts as you heard Reid shift in his seat next to you, and you looked towards him again.

“Do you see that set of stars right there?” he asked, and you looked to where he was pointing.

“I think so?” you replied, your eyes searching for what he was talking about.

Reid put an arm around your shoulders, pulling you close to him. He paused for a moment and then instantly recoiled, his hands going up in surrender.

“I—I’m sorry! I wasn’t thinking, and—and I just wanted you to see the constellation…”

“Spencer, you don’t need to apologize! I don’t mind at all. I’m having trouble finding the stars you’re talking about, and would really appreciate the help,” you smiled at him, hoping you were encouraging him to continue.

“O-okay,” he cleared his throat and smiled, a slight tinge of pink coloring his cheeks.

Reid gently put his arm back around your shoulders, his head coming close to yours so he could see from your eye-line. You took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds, your stomach full of butterflies. You felt your heart start to beat a little quicker and louder at Reid’s touch, and you let out the breath you had been holding.

“So do you see those three stars in a row?” he pointed again, and you nodded. “And then from the first star in the row there is a star in a slightly diagonal line above and below it? And it’s like that for the last star in that row, too. It’s kind of like two trapezoids on top of each other.”

“I think I see it…” you paused, searching. “Wait, I see it!”

“That’s Orion’s Belt,” Spencer grinned. “The constellation was named after a hunter in Greek mythology, and the earliest depiction of it was created in mammoth ivory around thirty-two thousand to thirty-eight thousand years ago.”

“That’s prehistoric. That’s amazing…” you muttered.

Spencer looked at you, a gentle smile coming onto his face as he leaned back. He noticed how your hair framed your face and the wonderment in your eyes as you looked at Orion’s Belt. He so wanted to take your hand, but didn’t know if you would be comfortable with the contact. Instead, he admired your beauty and hoped that one day he would be able to touch you as much as he wanted, with your consent of course.

However, he was anxious that you wouldn’t want to see him again and that you were just humoring him. He thought that the date was going really well, but he knew that not all dates where both parties were getting along ended in success. Spencer looked at the date from a logical standpoint: he had been doing everything that a proper gentleman would, the conversations the two of you had been having were interesting and fun, and you hadn’t made some excuse to leave the date early. From what he could conclude, the date was so far a success. He was sure that there would be a second date.

But his mind went to the worst case scenario and made him second guess himself. What if you were just putting up with him to have something to do for an evening, or for a free meal? He didn’t think you were shallow, but his mind still offered that possibility. Were you going to tell your friends how bad the date was after he dropped you off at your apartment? Were you going to think that he was a loser for spilling endless facts throughout the night? He sighed.

“Are you okay?” you met his eyes, your brows arched in slight concern.

“Uhm, are—are you having fun tonight?” he asked uneasily.

“Am I having fun? Of course I am!” you paused. “What makes you think I’m not?”

“I don’t know…I was just wondering if this date is going well.”

“I think it’s going really well, Spencer,” you smiled shyly at him.

“R-Really?”

You leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek, quickly returning to your position on the bench. You looked away, embarrassed at how impulsive your act was but feeling it was the right thing to do. You smirked to yourself and fiddled with the strap on your purse.

“(Y/N)?” Spencer asked, his mind still in shock.

You slowly turned back and looked at him, your heart pounding, wondering if it was okay what you had just done. His brown eyes stared into yours and he slowly lifted a hand to your cheek. He shifted closer to you, and you both leaned towards each other. The kiss was slow and gentle, his hand pulling your face nearer to his. You yearned to tangle your fingers in his hair and climb into his lap, but didn’t want to change the mood of the kiss. Instead, you held onto the front of his sweater and tugged him closer.

Reid pulled away suddenly, a furious blush on his cheeks. You let go of him and tucked your hair behind your ears again, self-conscious. You glanced at him; he had his hands in fists on his lap and he was staring intently at the ground. You felt your heart drop as you thought that the kiss had ruined the night.

“I’m really sorry, (Y/N), I should’ve asked for permission first,” Spencer said as he turned back to you, not meeting your eyes.

“What? No, it’s okay. You don’t need to ask,” you gave him a reassuring smile.

Spencer’s eyes lit up as he made eye contact with you again. This time, he put both hands on your cheeks and pulled you as closes as he could, kissing you deeply. Your heart soared, and you couldn’t wait to see what came next.


End file.
